Those who are pure in heart (Psalms 73)

Day 1: Those who are pure in heart

 

 

 

 

[Psalms 73]

 

 

 

 

            Once, when I bought a new car, I advised my children not to eat in the back seat to keep it well-maintained.  For about a year, I was able to keep the car clean without any issues.  However, a year later, my oldest son Dillon suddenly threw up a lot in the back seat of my car.  Perhaps he had been feeling unwell since the previous night and eventually vomited in my car.  At that moment, my oldest daughter Yeri covered her nose with her hand, complaining about the strong smell.  Even my youngest daughter Karis expressed her discomfort with the smell.  Haha.  Fortunately, there was a gas station nearby.  I quickly drove there and used towels to clean up all the food that came out of Dillon's stomach and wiped down the car floor and seats.  This incident reminded me of the word of Jesus: “What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean’ (Mt. 15:11).  So, I had a conversation with my children to teach them those word. I told them that when food goes into our bodies, it's not dirty in itself, but what comes out from inside can smell and be dirty like this.  Therefore, I tried to teach my children to guard their hearts against bad thoughts, lies, jealousy, envy, and sinful things.

We must guard our hearts, which are the source of life (Prov. 4:23).  We have to protect our hearts from the sinful things of this world.  There are so many sinful things around us that want to pollute our hearts.  Among the things we see, hear, feel, smell, and touch, there are many sinful things that try to deceive and defile our hearts.  Living in this sinful world full of such sinful things, you and I must strive to maintain the purity of our hearts.  In Matthew 5:8, Jesus says to us, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God."  We should strive to be blessed individuals with pure hearts who can see God.

In today's passage, Psalms 73, Asaph, the psalmist, truly affirms that God does good to those in Israel whose hearts are pure (v. 1).  However, Asaph confesses that his feet had almost slipped (v. 2).  Why did his feet almost slipped?  What are the factors that almost cause us to stumble in trying to maintain purity of heart?  Asaph teaches us about three factors in today's passage:

First, Asaph almost stumbled because he saw the prosperity of the wicked.

 

Look at Psalms 73:3 – “For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”  Asaph was on the verge of stumbling as he envied the prosperity of the wicked.  We can fully understand Asaph's envy (jealousy).  Once, an elderly saint asked me a similar question: 'Why is it that those who believe in Jesus are often poor and struggling, while those who don't believe in Jesus seem to have plenty of money and live comfortably?'  It seemed like this saint had pondered this question a lot.  However, I believe this concern isn't unique to this saint alone.  I think many of us, Christians, have these kinds of thoughts.  The danger of such thoughts is that Satan tries to deceive saints who have them and plant jealousy in their hearts.  Consequently, we end up, like Asaph, envying the prosperity of the wicked.  What does the prosperity of the wicked entail?  It means they have no burdens (v. 5).  Furthermore, the wicked are healthy (vv. 4-5).  Additionally, they are always at ease and accumulate wealth (v. 12).  How many things there are that even the righteous might envy!  We can ask ourselves this question: 'Why is it that people who don't believe in Jesus live without suffering and have good health, while the righteous constantly experience difficult trials, their bodies deteriorating, even though they believe in Him?'

 

Second, Asaph was on the verge of stumbling due to the arrogance of the wicked.

 

Look at Psalms 73:6a – “Therefore pride is their necklace, …."  Asaph not only saw the prosperity of the wicked, but he also witnessed their arrogance.  The arrogance of the wicked can be considered in three aspects:

 

(1)    It's the pride in their actions.

 

This refers to the violence of the wicked.  Look at verse 6b: “…  The garment of violence covers them.”  This means that all their actions and expressions are marked by oppressing and exploiting others (Yoon-seon Park).

 

(2)    It's the pride in their hearts.

 

This is indicated by the haughty eyes of the wicked.  Look at verse 7: "Their eyes bulge with fatness; their hearts overflow with follies."  When one's belly is full, what happens?  Their eyes become haughty.  In other words, their imagination knows no bounds, leading to an insatiable desire to amass wealth.  Consequently, they gain more income than their budget allows (Park).  

 

(3)    It's the pride in their speech.

 

This points to committing sins with their mouths. Look at verses 8-9: “They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression.  They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth.”  What does this mean?  When the Bible says, "they set their mouths against the heavens," it signifies a self-assuredness as if they were as high as the heavens. And when the Bible says, "their tongue struts through the earth," it denotes behavior focused on spreading slander wherever they go.  In other words, the wicked, in their arrogance, go about boasting and spreading slander.  

 

When observing such behavior of the wicked, the righteous, who are enduring suffering, can easily stumble.

 

             Third, Asaph was on the verge of stumbling because of the people who followed the wicked.

 

Look at Psalms 73:10-11: "Therefore his people turn back to them, and find no fault in them. And they say, 'How can God know?  Is there knowledge in the Most High?”  What Asaph witnessed was that a faction arose, accepting the wicked's evil thoughts and adopting their arrogant ideology, leading to an increase in the number of people following the wicked.  When Asaph saw this, he was very close to stumbling.  Those who imitated the wicked turned apostate, doubting the providential rule of the God they once believed in.  They thought that God was indifferent to the affairs of this world.  How challenging must this have been for Asaph?  When he saw God's people, who were supposed to follow Him, now following the wicked, Asaph surely must have been shaken even just a little.  In this situation, Asaph's conclusion regarding the wicked was as follows: "Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches" (v. 12).

 

When you see the prosperity of the wicked, that is, their constant ease and increasing wealth, how do you think you would react?  Wouldn't you feel discouraged?  Might you not feel angry?  Perhaps you would even be tempted to curse them in your heart?  How did Asaph respond to the prosperity of the wicked?  

 

(1)    Asaph considered his own commitment to righteousness as in vain.

 

Look at verse 13: "All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence."

 

(2)    Asaph lamented his toilsome life.

 

Look at verse 14: "For all the day long I have been stricken and rebuked every morning."

 

Ultimately, the factor that caused righteous Asaph to complain in his heart was the realization that while the wicked prospered, he himself was caught in hardship (Park).  Faced with these thoughts of the prosperity of the wicked and his own hardships, how did Asaph proceed?  He endeavored to understand.  In other words, Asaph tried to unravel the complexity of the providence of God with his limited knowledge (Park).  However, these efforts ultimately greatly troubled his heart (v. 16): " When I pondered to understand this, It was troublesome in my sight."  In the midst of this difficulty, what did Asaph do?  He entered the sanctuary of God.  It was there that he came to realize three things:

 

(1)    Asaph came to realize the end of the wicked.  

 

Look at verse 17: "Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end."  What is the end of the wicked?  It is destruction (v. 18), desolation (v. 19), complete ruin (v. 19), and despise  (v. 20).  Look at verses 18-20: “Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction.  How they are destroyed in a moment! They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors!  Like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, when aroused, You will despise their form.  The prosperity of the wicked is short-lived.  They are not far from falling into destruction.  God, as if in slumber, endures their wickedness for a time, but when the time comes, He awakens and brings judgment upon them.

 

(2)    Asaph came to realize the end of the righteous.

 

What is the end of the righteous?  Look at verse 24: " With Your counsel You will guide me, And afterward receive me to glory."  The end of us, the righteous, is that the Lord will receive us into glory.  The Apostle Paul also conveys a message of hope to us in Romans 8:18 - "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."

 

(3)    Asaph came to realize his own foolishness and ignorance.

Look at verse 22: "Then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You.”  Asaph, who had previously envied the prosperity of the wicked and harbored painful complaints due to his doubts, realized how foolish and ignorant he had been when he entered the sanctuary of God.  Therefore, he blamed himself and repented for being as foolish as a "beast" before the Lord.

Thus, by entering the sanctuary of God and coming to understand the fate of the wicked and his own identity before God, Asaph makes three beautiful confessions in Psalms 73:23-28:

(1)    Asaph's first confession was, "You have taken hold of my right hand."

 

Look at verse 23: " Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand."  Despite almost stumbling when he saw the prosperity of the wicked, their arrogance, and the people who followed them, Asaph, in the midst of it all, realized that the Lord had held his right hand, preventing him from stumbling and, instead, leading him with His counsel (v. 24).  What was the lesson that the Lord taught Asaph here?  It was the understanding that the Lord would grant glory to the righteous in the end.

 

(2)    Asaph's second confession was, "the nearness of God is my good."

 

Look at verse 28: “But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, That I may tell of all Your works.”  Despite any hardships his body and heart may face, Asaph resolved to trust in the Lord, the Rock of his heart, and the eternal portion of his inheritance, forever.

 

(3)    Asaph’s third confession was, "Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you."

 

Look at verse 25: "Whom have I in heaven but you?  And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you."  The heart that meets God in the sanctuary, the pure-hearted saint, does not envy the prosperity of the wicked while living on this earth.  That saint does not live by committing sin in the midst of arrogance, seeking wealth, avoiding hardship and suffering, and selfishly satisfying their desires.  Instead, that saint knows the ultimate fate of the wicked and the ultimate fate of the righteous, desiring nothing in this world but only longing for the Lord and living for Him.  It reminds me hymn “I’d Rather Have Jesus”:

 

                (v. 1) I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold, I'd rather be His then have riches untold;

                        I'd rather have Jesus than houses or lands.  I'd rather be led by His nail-pierced hand

                (v. 2) I'd rather have Jesus than men's applause I'd rather be faithful to His - dear cause;

                        I'd rather have Jesus than World-wide fame.  I'd rather be true to His holy name

                (v. 3) He's fairer than lilies of rarest bloom He's sweeter than honey from out the comb;

          He's all that my hungering spirit needs, I'd rather have Jesus and let Him lead

(chorus)

          Than to be the king of a vast domain Or be held in sin's dread sway.

          I'd rath-er have Jesus than anything This world affords today.

 

As Asaph, whose heart was pure, was almost stumbled, Satan is striving to make us stumble by causing us to envy the prosperity of the wicked.  Furthermore, Satan is trying to make us stumble by making us see the wicked as the pursued ones.  In such moments, what should we do?  We must, like Asaph in Psalms 73, enter into the sanctuary of God.  And there, we must come to realize the end of the wicked and of the righteous.  We must also, like Asaph, recognize our own foolishness.  In doing so, we too can make a beautiful confession, just like Asaph: "Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you."

 

 

 

Desiring a pure heart,

 

 

James Kim

(Confessing that Asaph's confession is my confession as well)